Mass panic in Red Sox nation, yet again..

And here we are again. Another season of Major League Baseball, another mass panic in Red Sox nation. Perhaps the only difference this time around is it’s happening so early. Three games into a billion game season, the Sox ‘faithful’ are exploding en masse like Ridley Scott’s aliens out of people’s chests, shouting, railing and raging to everyone and anyone who will listen. Name one Internet entity and I guarantee you a Red Sox fan is venting on it. Mainstream sporting websites, blogs, Internet forums, Internet flat pack assembly forums, Internet cooking tip sites.

Even internet adult chat sites

‘Hi, I’m Mindy, what can I do you for big boy, do you like brunettes?’
‘Screw that Mindy, I wanna talk about the Sox! I can’t take any more of this season, it’s driving me nuts!’

'They aint gonna win the freakin World Series! Get 'em!'

Well, as any good Physician would say, settle down people. Relax. It’s not terminal. We can treat this. Take two of these and see me in the morning. And so forth.

A little perspective here. We are 4% the way through the MLB season. What happens today, tomorrow, even next week, is probably not going to have a massive impact on the outcome of the 2011 MLB season.

Step away from the precipice, lads and lassies.

There’s no denying it has been a particularly ugly, turgid start to the Red Sox season, however baseball judges teams on the long, hard slog, not the short, sharp dash. The Yankees no doubt feel pretty good about themselves, but they have people like Ivan Nova and AJ Burnett in their rotation. The Phillies are flexing a little muscle, but imagine the scenario if Cliff Lee’s body starts to fall apart again? The Rangers? Great to see those antler signs cropping up again, but let’s see them win a few games away from that ridiculous launching pad of a home field of theirs. A couple of cold evenings in the Bronx or in Fenway should set them straight.

Even with the insipid 0-3 record, believe it or not there are reasons for the Red Sox and their fans to be still ever hopeful for the season in store.

Let’s knock through them, one by one.

‘’I love it when you call me Big Papi’’Papi is back, and this time he brought his bat
There’s something different about Papi in ’11, isn’t there? He looks calm, focussed and energized. He is launching the ball with authority, and going about it in a very business like manner. Papi is a deeply proud man, both an asset and a draw back at times. In this case, it’s pure gold. With Papi slugging away with a Grand Canyone sized chip on his shoulder down in the sixth hole, how deep is this Red Sox lineup, potentially? Most teams would be delirious to have a Papi like slugger batting third or fourth. The Sox can stash him in the six hole and watch the RBIs pile up. This is something to be happy about, for those Red Sox fans currently occupying metaphorical ledges around the globe.

‘’Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!!’’The Yankees are enjoying something of a mirage
Great start for the kids in the Bronx, right? Hang on one short second there. Did you see opening day, against the Tigers? Detroit pulled up just short of wrapping the game up in fancy gift-wrap, and presenting it on a platter to the pinstriped ones. Let’s see a full season of that ramshackle rotation. Let’s see that OAP lineup (A-Rod, Jorge, Jeter and Rivera are all closer to 40 than most sensible Yankee fans would like) get through the season injury free. Let’s see Jibba Jobba Chamberlein get through a full season without landing in jail. Let’s see that flimsy, shallow looking bullpen make it to Soriano and Rivera every night without imploding. Let’s do all of the above before we go crowning the Yankees the 2011 AL East Champions.